22nd Day

22^nd Day

Bonjour!!!

            I had a nice sleep in Cancon.  The sun was already 20 degrees above the eastern horizon and the moon a pale ghost in the western sky.  Wanting something warm I heated up a cupful of Japanese noodles. 

            There was a steep rise where the road dipped near the lake.  Fortunately it was short and I had my morning legs.  What a difference between morning and afternoon legs.  The trick is to fool the legs into thinking that there are two mornings.

            The first seven km were the mere fingers of a baby’s hand.  There were times that I rode the length of the finger before diving down into a forested ravine.  The traffic has been minimal.  I have been forced off the road by several farm machines that prey on old cyclists like huge locusts.  My chain derailed twice.  But otherwise the trip went smoothly.

            I curled into Lauzun exactly at noon.  I cycled over to visit the well-advertised chateau.  Unfortunately the doors were closed for the noon break.  I had lunch on a bench in the shade of part of the wall that once encircled the city.  I had checked at the bakery hoping for the luck of yesterday.  Instead I had a delicious tuna-Mexican style salad with bread and honey.

            Next up came Eymet.  This town had a busy town square with a very nice fountain in the center.  Restaurants and boutiques bordered the square.  The major feature is the “bastide” which is a stone fortress.  A river limits the town on one side.   Many of these towns have maintained buildings and narrow winding streets from the medieval times.  The effect is very attractive and tourists are enthralled by the historic and romantic atmosphere. 

            A very young and very attractive lady reopened the Office de Tourisme promptly at 2:00.  She was able to find a campground in Ste-Foy de Grande about 30 km away. 

            I hopped on D 18 for the whole ride, a nice country road with few cars and fewer trucks.  The dense forests have been replaced by large fields of wheat and hay.  Vineyards started popping up everywhere like Napa Valley.  I sailed along arriving in 2.5 hours including stops. 

            The last two stops I have had the campgrounds to myself.  Tonight’s is filled to the brim.  I counted only three spots unrented.  The owner is British and nearly every camper is from the British Isles.  He had worked in the campground business in England before trying his luck by buying this one.  He said that he has sunk a lot of money into renovating the place.   The place does not have many spaces but business was brisk.

The couple across from the way are Dutch and have been on the road for two months, mostly in southern Spain.  I laid down to read and fell fast asleep.  When I awoke the Dutch lady was smiling and said, “You needed that.”

            I laughed and asked, “Did I snore?”

            She shook her head but her mischievous grin said otherwise.

            The German couple to their right defied the imagination.  She was tall, just shy of six feet, and looked like she could best Bruce Jenner in the decathlon.  She could not have been a day over 35.  He on the other hand was 6 inches shorter, was bald headed, had a belly slipping over his belt, and was easily 10 years passed 35.    

            For dinner I had the duck pate, bread, figs, tomato, olives, and wine.  The young lady back in Eymet had suggested the figs with the pate, kissing her fingertips from her smacking lips.

Au revoir!!!